


futurebound

by angioponder



Category: VIXX
Genre: Bad Flirting, Boys Kissing, Comfort, Domestic, Established Relationship, Everyone Is Gay, Falling In Love, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Humor, Kim Wonshik | Ravi is Whipped, Lee Hongbin is So Done, Light-Hearted, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, No Plot/Plotless, No Smut, Prompt Fill, RaBin - Freeform, Roadtrip, Romance, Slice of Life, Teasing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Travel, enjoy, i just wanted to write something light and fun, just rabin being cute, kind of, soft boyfriends, travel AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-20 23:17:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16564979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angioponder/pseuds/angioponder
Summary: A prolonged squeak from a chip bag being stretched open followed by a series of loud crunching noises echoed throughout the vehicle.“Wonshik, I swear to god if you leave one speck of trash in my car—”“It’s a rental,” Wonshik replied mid-chew.“I paid to have this vehicle for the next two weeks,” Hongbin retorted. "So technically, it's my car.”“We split the cost,” Wonshik said around a mouthful of chips, “sotechnically,” he continued chewing, “it’s not.”“You’re lucky I love you,” Hongbin muttered, his hands gripping the steering wheel a little as he cringed at the sound of another crunch.“And I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t love you too.” Wonshik made a kissy face at his boyfriend, who returned a scowl at the sight of grease all over his lips.orsoft boyfriends Hongbin and Wonshik go on a roadtrip and are insufferably cute while doing so.





	futurebound

**Author's Note:**

  * For [eri_md](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eri_md/gifts).



> after like 6 months i can finally give this to you. accumulated with mothballs, dust and all, to bring the fluffiest of fluffs i could muster. this is for you. happy freakin' birthday.
> 
> ps. here's the [playlist](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRLw55eGMn8) for this if you're into that.

 

 

Summer had just begun, which meant Hongbin’s exchange program at his university in California had come to an end. After six long months of being apart, Wonshik ran into his arms as soon as he could in the busy LAX airport. To celebrate being physically reunited around the same time of their 2nd year anniversary, they planned a roadtrip across the country together before returning home to South Korea.

About four days ago, they left Hongbin's college town at dawn. The trees swayed with the wind when they loaded the car with two full duffle bags in the trunk, warm woolen blankets, fluffy pillows, and just enough money in their pockets. Wonshik got into the driver’s seat, still fully awake from jet lag and looked over at a sleeping Hongbin who curled himself into the passenger’s seat. His soft bed hair was poking out of the overly large hoodie he was wearing, and the dslr camera hanging from his neck was nestled in his lap. Just moments ago, before they got in the car, Hongbin was smacking himself in the face before he pointed his camera towards the beautiful hues of orange, purple and magenta as they met in the sky, only to fall asleep in an instant as soon as he was done. 

“What?” Hongbin said self-consciously when he was more awake. “We’re in a different place every time we wake up.” 

Wonshik only chuckled in endearment. Hongbin’s passions still seeped into every little thing he did and Wonshik’s heart still swelled with pride every time he got to witness it.

Some things never do change.

 

 

\---

 

 

It was near dusk by the time they pulled into a place they could stay overnight and set up camp. Hongbin lifted the back door up, folded the back seats down, and hung a string of lights inside the car, while Wonshik arranged their blankets and pillows for them to sleep on. When they both changed into more comfortable clothing, they climbed into the back to get cozy.

“What a day, huh?” Wonshik said, putting on one of the many playlists he made for their road trip. One that went with the deep green growing darker before them, the lake water standing still, sparse amounts of fireflies twinkling as the evening fell.

“Yeah,” Hongbin replied. To his side, he pulled out his camera and flicked through them. There were photos of his friends high-fiving Wonshik for the first time, their sandy feet touching the LA beach, their meals from the local off-campus diner he dragged Wonshik to, the scenic view by the long roads they’ve been passing, many of Wonshik’s side profile while driving, and the most recent ones of the woods. “You like it so far?”

“It’s good,” Wonshik said, tucking himself under the blankets and rubbing his socked feet against Hongbin’s for warmth. “I can see why you had a good time here. Your friends Jaehwan and Sanghyuk were nice, too, if they’re not being dumb asses, which apparently—”

“—is 90% of the time, yes,” Hongbin finished with a laugh. “I knew you’d get along. I was excited you guys finally got to meet.” He smiled and put away his camera. “It’s a pity you didn’t get to know each other longer.”

“It’s okay,” Wonshik stretched his arms out and then pillowed one behind his head. “I mean, they promised to see us when their family decides to travel back.”  

Hongbin nodded then gingerly laced his fingers with Wonshik’s thinking to himself about how nice it is to have his boyfriend to himself anyway. As much as he tried to involve Wonshik in all his new experiences, nothing beats finally having him here to see and experience everything he’d talked about, everything he’d shared photos of, everyone he had befriended and just, everything he grew to love.

“I really did um, miss you, that is.”

At Hongbin’s barely choked out confession, Wonshik smiled and tucked him in close, wrapping his arms around him. Hongbin buried himself in his chest, and after a moment peeked upwards to see the little glow of lights dancing behind Wonshik’s head.

It was soft and sweet when their lips met. Hongbin hoped he relayed how glad he was with their shared memories of the past, and promises of more to come.

 

 

\---

 

 

Wonshik found driving in the early mornings peaceful, with the world still waking up and the streets empty before him. No sense of expectations, no sense of time, just the road, his music, his own thoughts, and Hongbin, who shifted in his seat and let out a yawn.

“Morning, sunshine,” Wonshik greeted. Hongbin didn’t say anything in return, but stretched his arms and arched his back with a groan.

“Ew,” Hongbin replied later, smacking his lips languidly and slowly blinking himself awake, while Wonshik only laughed in that deep, hoarse way that he did. “Can we stop for a bit?”

They were driving through a desert this time round, with nothing but the impending heat, sand, some green, and a few of neither of those things. Hongbin though, saw something else. Saw all the different layers of color on the boulders they passed, saw all the cactus flowers storing away water from the previous time it rained, and all the other animals that were out, trying to ensure another tomorrow.

The driver’s door opened when the car engine shut off and Wonshik was about to get out when he was pulled back into his seat. Hongbin sputtered out a laugh and reached over to unbuckle the seatbelt holding his embarrassed boyfriend down and got out of the car.

They went about separately, but not too far that they couldn’t see each other. About thirty minutes later, they traced their steps back. Hongbin with more photos to add, of an abandoned building and the near blue sky contrasting with the orange-ish terracotta landscape, and Wonshik with a few rocks in his pocket as well as photos he snuck of his boyfriend. Both of which he thought were pretty.

Just as they were about to get back into the car, Hongbin quickened his pace suddenly, tugging Wonshik past it, and dragging him towards the middle of the road.

“Wha—” Wonshik started, faintly alarmed, “there could be cars, Binnie!”

“There’s no one here, just—” he made him stand roughly on the double yellow line, and when he was sure Wonshik wasn’t going to move away, he walked backwards. “Maybe a little to the left.” Wonshik, still puzzled and alarmed, tipped his toes to check behind Hongbin and then behind himself before mechanically shuffling a little to his right. “Yeah, right there. Now, _don’t_ move.”

After taking a couple of shots, Hongbin straightened back up with a furrow on his brow.

“Can you look—I don’t know—less worried? You’re too stiff and twitchy looking.”

“ _Really_ ?” Wonshik squawked, “I’m in the _middle_ of the fucking _road_ and I—” Hongbin went back to snapping away, “—could get _run over_ any minute!”

“Perfect,” Hongbin said walking away, already looking through the shots he took.

“Wait, where are you going?”

“You can move now. Let’s go.” Wonshik looked like he really wanted to, but stayed put for some reason. Hongbin looked at him questioningly. “C’mon, I got the shot already.”

“No, w-wait—”

It confused Hongbin how his usually worrisome and fearful boyfriend was enduring said fearful situation.

“I-I’m already here so…take one with me?”

“Oh.”

He didn’t normally like being in photos himself; would rather be taking them instead, but with the way Wonshik was looking at him nervously for more than one reason (the obvious one being in the middle of the road), Hongbin ran back to the car and came back with his tripod without another word.

 

 

\---

 

 

“Let’s switch at the next gas station,” Hongbin suggested, setting his guitar on his lap to rest his hand on Wonshik’s thigh. It was late afternoon and they were getting close to the next major city, built on the edge of the desert they were driving through.

“Could we check out that fossil museum first?”

“Of course,” Hongbin’s lips quirked up. Throughout the entire trip, Wonshik had been reading a lot of the signs out loud, said he was practicing his pronunciation so that when he made his songs with English lyrics, it would flow and sound better. In the process, they passed multiple billboards with the same advertisement that caught his attention, not that he really needed it to be shown more than once for him to want to visit the place.

Animal bones greeted them upon walking in, and numerous types of rocks were on display. It wasn’t like the museum on Wonshik’s bucketlist (the one in Washington, D.C.), but it didn’t quell his excitement either way. He looked like how he would when December came around and the tree was put up in the living room, covered in all it’s tinsel glory.

They didn’t stay long, going on to tour the small place by themselves, with Wonshik roaming ahead and Hongbin following close behind, listening to him explain animatedly what the formations were, and how the fossilized animals might have looked like had they still existed. The highlight of their visit was when they reached the end of the exhibit. For a small fee, they could dig in a large sandbox for fossils and keep three of the ones they found. To say Wonshik was ecstatic was an understatement. Hongbin didn't even have the heart to throw sand at him for fear of ruining his experience.

With a few souvenirs in tow, they were ready to get back on the road. Hongbin picked his guitar back up and plucked on a couple of strings. Wonshik by his side mimicked the sounds of instrumental beats, blending with the melodies being strummed. Eventually Hongbin started making up lyrics to go with the song. Something silly and light hearted. Little inside jokes, both old and recent ones that were made on the trip, then Wonshik added sappy love confessions which earned him a light shove for “crashing” the mood. Hongbin didn’t fool anyone though, if the smile he failed to hide was of any indication.

 

 

\---

 

 

“How do I look?” Wonshik was standing in the middle of a store selling souvenirs like common names engraved on sheriff star keychains, shot glasses decorated with longhorn cattle, and t-shirts that said _someone who really loves me went to Texas and bought me this shirt_. Hongbin stopped fiddling with one of the wooden slingshots to spare him a glance.

“You look like you,” Hongbin replied plainly, “but with a cowboy hat on.”

“Wow, yeah thanks,” his shoulders deflated as Hongbin burst out into laughter. “Great info.”

“Anytime, babe.” Hongbin sent him a cheeky wink.

Wonshik turned around to put the hat away and was checking out some postcards when he felt something graze his head.

“This one,” Hongbin said grinning wide, “looks better on you. Matches your handsome face.”  

Not a moment later, Wonshik disappeared under the hat to hide the pretty redness blooming on his face, but Hongbin pulled it off his head, kissed him on the cheek then left, hat in tow. A still blushing Wonshik was rooted to the spot, watching Hongbin giggle away as he walked over to the cashier to pay for it.

 

 

\---

 

 

Live jazz music was playing throughout the low-lit restaurant. The food they ordered for dinner was sitting on the table untouched until Wonshik came back from the bathroom. Hongbin was taking a quick, sweeping video of some local band performing and the small crowd of people swaying their bodies to it when someone behind him cleared their throat.

“Hey there, gorgeous,” drawled a voice in English. “You come here often?”  

“I’m sor— Oh my fucking god, Wonshik.”

Wonshik stood there with his hands in his pockets, beads of yellow, purple and green around his neck, smugly grinning at Hongbin. The interaction earned him a playful smack on the arm and he snickered, breaking character, but he managed to continue his act.

“That the name of your boyfriend?” Another smack on the arm. “He’s a lucky guy.”

“I’m ignoring you,” Hongbin said turning in his seat so he could no longer see him in his peripheral vision.

“Aw, come on. I couldn’t resist.” Wonshik reached out to tuck a tuft of Hongbin’s hair behind his ear. “My boyfriend is so pretty.”

“Shut _up_ ,” he swatted at him, red in the face from the way Wonshik’s voice softened at the end of his last sentence. “You’re making a scene.”  

“ _You’re_ a great scene.” He dodged another incoming smack with a rambunctious laugh.

“St _—op_.”

“So uh,” Wonshik cleared his throat again then raised his eyebrows twice, “can I have your number?”

“ _Sit_ down and eat your _goddamn_ crawfish!”

And sit down he did. He also made constant eye contact with Hongbin while he sucked on the crawfish head more than necessary.

They left the restaurant with remnants of corn in Wonshik’s hair that Hongbin threw at him.

 

 

\---

 

 

 

“Never seen so much land in my _life_ ,” Hongbin remarked. “I mean we get parks, and patches of real grass if we’re lucky but, man, _never_ this much.”  

“Hashtag city life,” Wonshik agreed, looking out through the passenger window. Driving through the southeastern part of the country surrounded them with miles and miles of corn, and a myriad of animals grazing the wide, green pastures littered with hay bales.

“The next restaurant I see is gonna be where we stop to get lunch,” Hongbin said around the steering wheel, “because I’m hungry, and we might not see another one for another hour at this rate.”

It took them more than an hour to find a place to eat that was still open for business. Mostly because Hongbin forgot his hunger upon wanting to take photos of _all_ the abandoned restaurants, which he did, pulling over for each one, ignoring the rumbling of his stomach and Wonshik’s exasperated cries of _I’m hungry, my ass!_

Eventually, they found a slightly run-down looking restaurant in the next town over. It must have been around for a while because there looked to be quite a few regulars getting their usuals. A lot of the red vinyl bar stools were torn in places and some of the neon signs didn’t work anymore, but it was nice. They even had a huge old jukebox in the corner. It made them think of old American movie sets where the main characters would go on a date to share a strawberry milkshake with lots of whipped cream and a bright red cherry on top.

“Can I get you boys somethin’ to drink?” A waitress of about middle age came to greet and hand them each a menu. They got coffee, which she poured into cups over saucers when she got back. Hongbin then ordered a simple eggs, bacon and toast with a side of hashbrowns for himself and a stack of pancakes for Wonshik, who was too flustered to reply when she called him honey.  

As they were eating their last few bites, she placed a small plate of apple pie on their chrome edged table with a smile. “I reckon you boys ain’t from ‘round here. So here’s a lil’ somethin’ for visitin’ us, on the house.” They happily gave her a generous tip and waved goodbye as they headed out to check out the rest of town.

Past the junkyard nearby, they saw a little store with all sorts of houseware items crowding the entire space out front. A bell rang when they opened the door to what looked like an antique shop. There was barely enough space for them to walk through, with a plethora of items covering every shelf, wall and path. Dusty as it was, there was a rustic charm to it. A simplicity that one would have difficulty finding in the heart of a city, unless purposely looked for, given that there’s no rush to be somewhere which was usually the case. Two weeks for a road trip might have been a bit of a stretch, but the couple intended to stop frequently and often, specifically for this reason.

Wonshik was looking through a small bucket of zip-locked buttons when Hongbin put a hand on his shoulder and hauled him over towards a large contraption of a sort. He plucked a quarter from his pocket of loose change and stuck it in the coin slot.

“Love Tester?” Wonshik read the words engraved on the wood. “How does it work?”

“I dunno~” Hongbin sang, inspecting the machine. He wrapped one hand on the metal handle and grabbed Wonshik’s to join his before squeezing it. It started to play some kind of song and the lights moved up and down the column of red-painted words. After a couple of minutes, the lights began to slow down, coming to a full stop.

“Clammy?” Wonshik raised his eyebrows at Hongbin.

“I’m sure we should’ve gotten ‘uncontrollable’ no problem, but the test probably picked up on how nervous you were instead of how hot we are together,” Hongbin poked him in the cheek and walked away to play with other little trinkets, some of which Wonshik bought. He hugged them close to his chest and dubbed them as his ‘lost treasures’ when Hongbin looked at him with playful judgment.

“It’s not possible for _me_ to get lost,” Hongbin muttered, passing through the bookshelves on their way out.

“I mean, sure? Your sense of direction is pretty great,” Wonshik replied. By the time he realized what Hongbin meant (which was a while later), he grabbed him in the tightest hug he could muster. “I know you won’t, but I’d still keep you.”

 

 

\---

 

 

“It’s almost over.” Hongbin was tracing the veins protruding from Wonshik’s wrists and forearms. They were laying together in their blankets while the rain was pouring, making little pitta-patta noises on the roof of their car. “I think I’m gonna be sad about it a little.” Wonshik hummed and rubbed Hongbin’s shoulder, prompting him to continue. “Is that weird? I mean like—” Hongbin lowered his hands, tucking them under the blankets before licking his lips. “It’s only been a few months.

There was a long pause as Wonshik thought. “Time isn’t everything, I guess,” he said eventually. He stopped rubbing Hongbin’s shoulder in favor of grazing his fingers through Hongbin's fringe. “Do you remember how we were about three years ago?” Hongbin listened to the rumbling timbre of his voice, despite the overwhelming urge to hide in embarrassment. “Because I do. The first time I saw you , I didn’t think much, but then you opened your _gigantic_ mouth—” Wonshik smiled at the smack he got from Hongbin who was now hiding, “— and I realized how much of a dweeb you actually were. It was pretty much over for me by the third month of knowing you. And you took how long?”

“Sometime… later?” Hongbin said peeking from under the blanket, knowing where this was going.

Wonshik snorted at his reply, pulling the blanket down so he could look at him. “A _long_ time later. A year, in fact, which is totally fine because,” he leant over, kissing his temple, “now we’re here: two years of happiness later.” He smiled a little dopily at Hongbin, his eyes turning into half moons, pulling his nose into an adorable crinkle.

“My point is,” Wonshik continued, “that time doesn’t measure the acceptable amount of love you can have for something. Not necessarily. You just… love. And when you realize it, it would still feel like magic. No matter how much earlier or later you felt it.” Wonshik kissed his temple again for good measure then pulled away to face the ceiling so he could lie more comfortably.

“Magic, huh?” Hongbin echoed as he snuggled closer, chasing him. “I’m glad I got to love you when I did.”

 

 

\---

 

 

“Oh wow.” Wonshik parked the car and took in the view.

Hongbin shifted in his seat, only one eye opened, already awake but still groggy. When he sat up to look, his other eye couldn’t stay closed if it wanted to and he smacked himself in the face before getting out, camera already pointing towards blue waves stretched wide across the horizon.

“Is this—Are we here?”

Hongbin lowered his camera to stare at him. He shook his head fondly before not-so-subtly pointing to the sign at the back of Wonshik’s head that read _Welcome to Miami Beach._

“I can't believe it,” Wonshik whispered in awe. “I’m standing where Drake hyung-nim filmed _God’s Plan_.”

Hongbin snorted loudly as Wonshik tried to reconcile this fact in his head. He looked about five seconds away from kissing the ground they were standing on.

There were plenty of exciting activities they could do in a tourist city like this one, sure, but they really only planned to spend most of it by the water. Checking out the beachside bars along the boardwalk, trying some Cuban cuisine and seeing walls covered by the miles in graffiti murals were definitely on the list as well, but for them, the beach was _it._

Despite it being eight in the morning, the summer sun was already high, making the idea of a dip in the water extremely appealing.

“C’mon Wonshik, let’s go! The water looks great!”

It only took them a short walk to get their feet on the warm sand. A glance around told them they had the place to themselves with barely any people around. The smell of saltwater filled their lungs as they took in the breeze. With there still a considerable distance from shore, he looked at Wonshik mischievously.

“I’ll race you!” Hongbin yelled, shoving him before booking it towards the water.

“Hey!” Wonshik regained his balance quickly and tried to grab Hongbin’s arm back to get even but missed. It didn’t matter anyway.

 

Wherever they were in their lives, whether it be back then, here and now, or in the future, Wonshik was bound to catch up, and Hongbin would let him. 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> thanks everyone for reading! it's been forever since i've posted something and it's not perfect but IT FEELS GREAT. IT GETS TO LIVE AND BREATHE NOW AFTER BEING STRANDED IN MY DRAFT BASEMENT PRISON. i hope you enjoyed it! please do leave comments and kudos and whatnots! i'd like to get to know you all sometime~


End file.
